Lake Oswego

MEDIAN INCOME*

$120,585

MEDIAN HOME VALUE

$865,688

AVERAGE RENT

$2025/month

Population

39,321

*STATISTICS SOURCES

About Lake Oswego

The city of Lake Oswego is a suburb south of Portland. It is bordered by the city of Portland to the North, The Willamette River to the east (Oak Grove and Milwaukie are on the other side of the river), I-5 (Tigard/Tualatin) to the west, and West Linn to the south.

Many people that move to Oregon from out of state are surprised to find that Oswego Lake is one of the few lakes in the metro area, and that Oregon in general does not have very many lakes, despite the precipitous rainfall.

The US Geological Survey has the official name of the lake as Lake Oswego, however all the residents refer to the lake itself as Oswego Lake to distinguish it from the city. It’s pronounced Oh-SWEE-go, NOT Oh-SWAY-go.

Lake Oswego is located mostly within Clackamas County, although portions of the northern side of the city are In Multnomah County. Usually residents of Lake Oswego located within Multnomah County have an option to send their children to Lake Oswego instead of Portland schools, but an additional fee must be paid for the option.

Many of the schools in Lake Oswego are some of the highest rated in the state of Oregon by websites such as greatschools.org. Because of this and the easy commute to downtown, the airport, and other large, local employers, average home prices here are the highest of any city in the state… by a healthy margin. (West Linn, Lake Oswego’s neighbor which is often referred to as “Oswego-light”, is in 2nd place.)

Oswego Lake was originally a channel of the Tualatin River but eventually the river changed course away from the lake. Natural events enlarged the channel into a small lake. But the addition of a concrete dam a century ago greatly altered the size of the lake into it’s present configuration.

Oswego Lake was a completely private lake until recently. Access to the lake was almost entirely limited to those that live on the lake or one of the various canals, or to those that own a home with deeded lake access already recorded on title. There are 20 easements around the lake, which are basically like small parks. However, even if you own a home with an easement, an application must be submitted and fees paid to the easement and Lake Oswego Corporation in order to be granted access.

You can learn more about easements and lookup whether or not a specific address has a deeded easement on the Lake Oswego Corporation website.

Recently, court challenges have called the legality of Oswego Lake as private into question. At the time of writing this, the Oregon State Supreme Court remanded the case back to Clackamas County Circuit Court which found that the lake originally was navigable and should be public. Another trial will be conducted to determine whether or not the city’s policies are legal.

Downtown Lake Oswego has changed a lot in recent years. Lake View Village and The Windward are new, large, mixed-use developments with high-end residential units, retail, and commercial spaces. Located on A Avenue and State Street, they are also next to Millennium Plaza Park. Known for Saturday Farmers Markets, music concerts, and other gatherings, the park is situated next to Lakewood Bay at the east end of the lake.

The addition of these and other retail/commercial buildings have brought an influx of shops and restaurants, breathing new life into the downtown area.

Lake Oswego is also well known for the private Oswego Lake Country Club. Situated north of the lake, the par 71 course was designed by H. Chandler Egan in 1924. Members also enjoy a restaurant, small pool, and many different events held throughout the year. There are 3 different types of membership, but the price tag behind the full Proprietary Membership is not for the faint-of-heart.

Many homes near the lake are high-priced, luxury, detached houses. But, there are many other neighborhoods in the city of Lake Oswego.

The neighborhoods to the northwest, such as popular Westlake, are mostly detached homes built around the 1980s-1990s. There are also condos and apartments available closer to Kruse Way, the main thoroughfare in this area. Many people that live here work nearby in the large Kruse Woods office campus (business park) next to Kruse Way on Meadows Road. Hundreds of businesses have offices here offering legal, technology, title, finance, real estate, accounting, and other professional services. Nearby there are various lunch spots, coffee shops, and other retail.

Mountain Park, to the east-northeast of Westlake, is a planned community characterized by it’s enormous HOA and mixture of 1970s detached houses, attached homes, apartments, and condos. Over 8000 people live here. There are numerous micro-neighborhoods in the area (some owners pay two HOA fees) but all owners within Mountain Park are part of the Mountain Park HOA. The Clubhouse is available to all members and includes an indoor aquatic center, impressive gym, tennis courts, sport court, community room, computer center, and much more. The area is aptly named as it’s actually located on a shield volcano named Mount Sylvania. The highest elevation is almost 1000 feet. Homes around Mountain Park can often be at 500’ or higher elevation (depending on location in the neighborhood), which increases the chances of seeing snow in the winter.

Neighborhoods to the south of the lake are a mixture of homes dating from midcentury (and older!) up to brand new homes, mostly without HOAs. The Lake Oswego Public Golf Course is located here along with Hazelia Field, known for it’s two amply-sized dog parks, large artificial turf athletic field, wetland, small playground, and trail access to the Stafford Basin Trail.

It’s also worthwhile to point out that the city of Rivergrove, population 604 (2020) is located to the south of Lake Oswego. A tiny community sandwiched between Lake Oswego and the Tualatin River, it is the smallest of metro Portland’s 24 independent cities. It has two pretty parks, no city tax, and literally only one part-time employee.